Division Six, Snake and Eagle
by kabukikitsune
Summary: Hermione finds herself and Ron facing an old enemy. One from their school days. Has Pansy come to finally enact her final revenge on them, or is she a blessing in disguise?


Hermione groaned softly as she felt the world come back to her. Her head was spinning, and her arms ached. Moving slightly, she tensed as pain shot through her wrists. Something tight was binding them together. It felt, she mused, like rope. Blinking her eyes, she tried to look around, only to find darkness. Groaning again, she slowly lifted her head, trying to ignore how it made the world seem to swim around her.

"Looks like the mudblood's awake." A gruff male voice said off to her right. "Bout damn time."

"Wh..." Hermione coughed "Where am I?"

"In due time pet." That same voice said. "In due time."

Rough hands reached, stroking over her shoulder, causing her to flinch back. That hand then reached up and ran through her hair before snatching off a scrap of fabric that had her blindfolded. Light flooded in, causing her to see spots. The world around her blurred and she blinked her eyes to try to clear them. Looking slowly around, she saw her assailant. The wizard was tall, and scarred. Grinning a toothless grin, he leered at her.

"Who..." she started, and then saw a lifeless form spread out on the floor near her. She didn't need to see the red hair to recognize it. "Oh god no! RON!" she screamed out, only to be silenced when the wizard smacked her hard enough to draw blood.

"Shut that mouth mudblood." He said and then followed her gaze before laughing. "Best you not worry about that little Auror. He's worm food now." The man said and once more turned to her. "If you behave, you won't be next."

Ron was...dead? Hermione thought, as tears started to flow. Shaking her head she cried out "No!" Ron couldn't be dead. It...it just couldn't be. The rough hands returned to her face again, forcing it up to look at her assailant. "Oh yes, kilt him myself. Didn't give much of a fight that one, then again...aurors never do." The man said proudly. "You, on the other hand. You gave us more than our share of trouble."

Her mind swam, trying to remember what had brought them here. The images formed slowly, but they eventually they did come. Ron and she had been invited to a function of some sort. A grand ball. They had mingled, danced, and were heading home when... her mind raced, but she couldn't piece it together, not entirely. Then it struck her.

"The wine..." Hermione gasped.

The man looked to her and laughed darkly. "Smart little mudblood." He said almost proudly. "Wondered if you'd figure it out. Wasn't hard really. Just spike your drink, and snatch you up. I think 'The Master' will be pleased. Not only did we get that Auror of yours, but we've got a pretty toy for him." Once more the man reached out, only to be stopped in his tracks when a woman's voice cut through the room.

"A toy for him. Not for you David."

The voice caused him to come up short, turning quickly. "What are you doing in here?" He spat at the voice, blocking the person from Hermione's view.

"Checking up on our prize. One that I seriously doubt the Master will like finding out you've been pawing over. I do wonder what he will say when I tell him."

"You ain't got to tell him nothing Parkinson." David spat back at her. "Cause..." His words were suddenly cut off, a choking sound coming from him. As Hermione watched, Pansy stepped forward, her wand extended and pointing at the wizard. "You don't want to finish that sentence Cassington."

The man was quickly turning blue, falling to his knees as he clutched at his throat, trying to choke out something. His eyes looked in horror at the woman as she watched him coldly. "Now, are you going to be a good boy, or should I continue the lesson?" Cassington nodded nervously, waving his hands in what must have been some kind of apology. "I can't hear you." Pansy said, a wry smirk upon her face.

"Y...yes Mistress." Cassington hoarsely coughed out.

With a snap of her wrist, Pansy dispelled the spell, giving the man time to recover. It took him several minutes of gasping to do so before he stood shakily. "I'm sorry Mistress. I just thought.." He wheezed.

"You're not here to think." Pansy said, turning to look coldly at Hermione. Hermione returned the look with all the anger and hate she had within her. Finding some spirit growing, she spat at Pansy and was rewarded when a glob of blood struck the woman's cheek. Almost as fast as that spittle landed, Pansy's hand moved, slapping Hermione across the cheek. The slap hurt, but it did nothing to dampen the defiance which burned within her.

"Leave us." Pansy said darkly, reaching to wipe the blood from her face.

"But...Mistress." The man started, only to quickly back out of the room when Pansy shot him a dark look. Turning, she followed him, and locked the door before looking down to Ron. "Bloody hell." Pansy said under her breath, as she approached his body and moved to kneel beside him.

"You leave him alone you bitch!" Hermione called out, struggling hard enough to cause the chair she sat in to fall over. Pansy looked back to her and slowly shook her head before looking to Ron once more. She slowly rolled him onto his back, and after checking his body over sighed. "Well, at least that's good. We got lucky there. Least he's still breathing."

Hermione struggled further and then stopped suddenly. "He's alive?" She cried, not wanting to believe what she was hearing. Knowing it was probably some ploy to make her torture, for she was certain she was about to be tortured, worse.

"Yeah. Potion of near death slipped into his wine." Pansy said clinicly. "Though, it'll only keep him in this state for a bit. We'll have to act fast." Turning to Hermione, she sighed and quickly moved over, reaching to right the chair and then look to her. "Hold still." She said, drawing her wand. Hermione flinched at this, and waited for the curse she knew would come, but was surprised to find that instead of a curse, it was a simple healing spell. One that deadened the pain from the slap, and stopped the bleeding.

"You're going to have one hell of a blackeye tomorrow, but least nothing was broken." Pansy said looking to Hermione. "How are you feeling?"

"Oh, I don't know. Tied to a chair, nearly assaulted by a gorilla in robes and now being tended to by a dark wizard? I'd say pretty crappy to be honest." She retorted.

Pansy laughed at this, the sound actually rather melodic. "Well, least you haven't lost your sense of sarcasm." She replied and then pursed her lips. "Look, we really don't have much time. I can't explain everything now, but help's on the way. It won't take them long to figure out that the 'Master' didn't send me. So, we're going to have to work fast. Can you stand?" She asked, waving her wand to remove Hermione's bindings.

"Why," Hermione asked, massaging her sore wrists and looking up at Pansy. "Why are you helping us?"

Pansy shot her a glance and then simply shrugged. "Long story. Suffice it to say, it's my job."

Hermione slowly stood, finding her feet had long since gone to sleep. Reflexively she reached out for something to steady herself, and to her shock ended up holding onto Pansy. "Woah, careful there." Pansy said, helping her steady. "Take it slow and easy." Shooting a glance back at the door, she raised her eyebrows as the handle started to shake. "Shit." She cursed and then looked to Hermione. Quickly pushing her back into the chair, she moved behind her and loosely looped the rope around her hands.

"What's going on?" Hermione asked shocked, as Pansy quickly touched a finger to her lips and nodded back at the door. "Don't move." Pansy mouthed, and quickly moved to stand by the door and wait. She had only just reached her position when the door burst in and Cassington returned, his wand in his hand. His eyes landed on Hermione, wand wavering just a hair. That was all the time Pansy needed. In that instant of hesitation, she moved. In shock, Hermione watched as the woman's hand went around the larger man's mouth, while another drew a thin blade across his neck. As blood sprayed everywhere, Pansy held on. A muffled groan coming from Cassington as he crumpled to the ground at her feet.

The body hadn't even stopped twitching before Pansy was quickly kneeling over it, wiping the blade off. Quickly pulling something from her pocket, she pressed what Hermione recognized as a kind of mirror. Those two way mirrors used by Aurors to communicate.

"You...killed him." Hermione gasped, her hands flying to her mouth in shock.

"Serpent to Eagle." Pansy said into the mirror, ignoring Hermione. "We've been discovered. Need evac now! Have medevac on standby. One mobile, one critical."

No sound came from the mirror, but Pansy seemed satisfied with it. Looking to Hermione, she walked over and shook her out of her shock. "I need you here and now Granger." She said sternly. "If we're to get out of this alive, you're going to have to accept the fact that people die." Pressing her wand into Hermione's hand, she nodded. "You best be ready to kill, because that's our only way out." Hermione looked to the wand in her hand, and then back to Pansy. "But what about you?" She asked.

"Don't worry about me. I can take care of myself." Pansy replied and then dragged Ron back to the chair. Reaching she pulled a table over and quickly upended it so it formed a kind of barrier. "This will give us some cover till the cavalry arrives." She said, and then added. "Just don't do anything too risky." As she spoke, she pulled up her dress, and from under it pulled what Hermione recognized to be a muggle pistol. Though, this one glinted with shifting runes that ran along its side. Ducking back down behind the impromptu barricade, Pansy reached to roughly pull Hermione down with her.

Somewhere in the building, Hermione heard a loud thud, followed by shouts of pain and terror. The rushing sound of feet coming in the direction of where the two now guarded Ron's lifeless body. Pansy held up one finger in a "wait" gesture, to which Hermione slowly nodded, gripping the woman's wand tightly. They didn't have to wait long. Two wizards suddenly burst through the door, coming up short when the saw Cassington's body. Pansy quickly kneeled over the table, and fired two green bursts from that muggle pistol, striking one wizard in the chest, and causing the second to retreat as the shot splintered the door frame.

Ducking back down, Pansy moved just in time for a spell fired from around the door to pass through where her head was. Hermione just watched in horror before firing spells of her own. The wand wasn't hers, but it seemed content with serving at least in a passable sense. One of her blindly fired spells must have struck, as a cry of pain came from outside. Pansy, for her part never stopped. Ducking from out of cover and firing in the direction of the door and then slipping back down. Grabbing the mirror she called out "Better hurry it up Eagle, they've got us pinned in here!"

"On our way. Meeting resistance in the kitchens." Came the curt reply.

"Then work your way through it. I'm half out," She called, standing to quickly fire a spell at a wizard who had used the lull in fighting to try to sneak in "And screw it. Broken wand. I'm calling it now. We are broken wand."

"Understood." Came the reply. "Omega porting into your location in five."

Pansy looked to her pistol and then to Hermione before nodding. Standing one last time, she fired a spell in the direction of the door, but this time she didn't get out of the way in time. An ugly red spell struck her in her shoulder, spinning her around and dropping her to the floor. The mirror skittered to land at Hermione's feet. Anger filling her, Hermione fired a killing curse at the wizard, and watched in satisfaction as he fell back out the door. Snatching up the mirror, she screamed into it. "Pansy is hit. Somebody, help. Please, anyone!"

"Copy, Alpha down," Came the reply, and "Omega there in three. Hold your position."

Hermione had no clue what was going on, just who this "Omega" was, and how they would get to her. Pansy was alive, she could tell that much, but an angry wound covered her left shoulder. Tossing the wand aside, she moved to press her hands on the wound to try to staunch the bleeding, only to have Pansy grab her arm and squeeze as she hissed "Leave me."

Hermione shook her head, hearing more wizards massing around the door. "No, you're not dying on me now!" She called out. Looking up over the barricade, she saw the dark wizards starting to push through. "So." She thought. "This is how I die. Trying to save the life of someone who hated me in school, who would have abandoned Harry to Voldemort. So be it." Closing her eyes and waiting for the inevitable, she smiled down at Pansy. "If we have to die, then we're doing it together." She said, and the woman smiled softly.

Death did not come. At almost the same instant Pansy smiled, the room was suddenly full. No less than five wizards in identical uniforms seemed to appear from no where. A rusty tin can dropping to the ground. "Portkey" Hermione thought to herself, and then chuckled. The bad guys brought backup. These wizards made no sound, and as she watched detached from the world, she was shocked to see that like Pansy they carried those same seemingly muggle weapons. The dark wizards never stood a chance. The fight, such that it was, ended as soon as it started. Four of the five moved out into the corridor, leaving a fifth behind with them. This witch, Hermione noted that while she couldn't see her face for the skull mask she wore she could still see the woman's long red hair, quickly knelt down beside Hermione and moved to press a pack against Pansy's wound. "Leave me." Pansy again said hoarsely. "I'll be fine. Check Ron. He needs that antidote, I can wait."

The witch nodded at this, as Hermione stood and moved back to be out of the way. Outside the door, she could hear the fighting continue, before it soon quickly died down. The witch turned to Ron, and started administering some potions. Color quickly started returning to his face and his breathing became more pronounced. "Will he be okay?" Hermione gasped, even as the witch looked over and nodded. She seemed to say something, and then paused. Reaching to her face, she pulled the mask down so it rested under her chin. Her eyes sparkled as she smiled at Hermione. "Just fine." She said and then looked to Hermione's hands. "Are you hurt?"

Hermione shook her head and then looked to her hands. Blood covered them, and the longer she looked, the more she saw. "No, I'm...I'm just in shock. What about Pansy?" She asked, remembering the woman.

"Through and through on the shoulder. Didn't hit anything vital." The witch said and then looked to her. "Bleeding's stopped, but we'll have to port her straight to Mungo's to heal."

Hermione nodded slowly, and for the first time tonight, felt relieved. Closing her eyes, she sighed and then let the blackness that had been wafting around the edge of her sight take her.

Hermione woke to find herself in a bed in St. Mungo's, a young medi witch tending her. Sitting up with a start she called out "Ron!" The witch looked at her for a moment, gently reaching to help her lie back. Resisting this, she struggled, calling out for him again.

"Calm down. He's fine. Sleeping in the next bed over." The witch explained. Hermione blinked, looking over to him and then relaxed back on her pillows. "What happened?" She asked. The witch just smiled and shrugged. "Don't ask me. I just work here." Her gaze moved to the ward end, and she smirked. "Looks like you have a visitor."

Hermione's gaze followed and lighted upon Pansy. The woman was dressed in a simple black military type uniform, her long hair pulled into a bun with a black beret on her head. Smiling warmly at Hermione, Pansy walked over as the nurse left. Hermione didn't know what to say, with mixed emotions filling her. There was so much she wanted to ask, and yet, old memories seemed to push those questions aside.

"I'm no psychic," Pansy said, moving to pull a chair over to Hermione's bed side and sit in it "But I'm willing to bet you want to know just what happened."

Hermione nodded slowly, her gaze on the woman.

"It's a long story, Granger." Pansy said, her gaze moving over her. "But I have to ask. How are you feeling?"

"Tired." Hermione said with a sigh. "Exhausted."

"Yeah, being pregnant does that to you. Trust me, I know." Winking at Hermione, she added "Though, you best tell Ron when he's awake. You aren't helping him any by hiding that fact."

Hermione gasped, reaching to rub a hand over her belly. How had Pansy known? Hell, she herself had only known a few weeks. She just hadn't worked up the guts to tell Ron yet. Looking to Pansy, she blinked. "You have kids?" She found herself asking, to which Pansy laughed gently and nodded. "Twins." The woman said, and then smiled. "Two little girls that look very much like their father, but that's not the question I know you're wanting to ask."

Hermione found it hard to picture that Pansy had children, and even harder to imagine her being married. Sure, she'd filled out considerably since they had left school, casting off the awkward stringy girl she'd been at Hogwarts. But kids? Really? Shaking her head to dismiss the thoughts, she turned to the question at hand.

"What just happened?" She asked finally.

"Like I said, it's a long story. The short of it? I work for the ministry. I'm part of a special group that deals with situations where Aurors might be out of their element. We're..." Pansy paused at this point, thinking for a time before shrugging "you know how the muggle police have their special operations teams?"

"You mean SWAT?" Hermione asked, remembering the word from when she was younger.

"The same." Pansy replied and then smirked. "Well, that's basically what we are. The organization is called "Division Six" and we're the special operations branch for the ministry. We handle everything from hostage situations, down to wizard sieges. Basically, the ministry's dirty work, though you didn't hear that from me." She said with a conspiritous wink.

Hermione just smiled, laying back on her pillows. "Pansy, I...I'm sorry." She said softly. "For everything."

Pansy laughed again, the sound the same melodic sound that Hermione had heard before. "Don't be. I was a right ass in school. You've every right to hate me, and I don't blame you for a thing." Hermione looked at her in disbelief, and Pansy just smiled broadly "I'm serious. Kids are...well, they're assholes. I was the biggest."

"I thought that was Draco?" Hermione said with a chuckle, and Pansy smirked, shaking her head. "Ok, you've got me there. So I was the second biggest." She said and then sighed, smiling gently.

"So...what happens now?" Hermione asked.

Pansy simply shrugged. "You go on with your life, you have many little Weasleys and unleash their terror on the world." Pointing at Hermione's belly, she added with a grin "Starting with that one." Winking as she stood, Pansy leaned over to kiss Hermione lightly on the forehead, and then quietly left the room.

Beside her, Ron stirred and then slowly sat up. "I had the strangest dream..." he said hoarsely, and then looked to her with his usual lopsided smile. "It was a dream wasn't it?"

Hermione just smiled to herself and then said softly. "Sweetheart, we need to talk."


End file.
